User Reviews

Reviews by vanrassel:

I confess  I'm one of those gullible rubes from Calgary who dines at the Grizzly Paw while the local GoreTex-clad sophisticates sip their apres-ski pinot noir and nibble their nouveau-fusion entrées at tonier locales.

Forgive me for cracking wise, but I'm having a hard time deciphering some of the knocks against the place  it's a pub and doesn't claim to be anything else. I'm all for a nice glass of wine and a well-prepared meal, but this is a beer website assessing beer bars and brewpubs. In that department, the Grizzly Paw does well for what it is.

Even though winter pursuits most often bring me to Canmore, the Grizzly Paw is probably at its best in the summer, when you can sit on the expansive patio. Indoors is rather workmanlike, with wooden tables spaced quite close together and TVs broadcasting sports. As one reviewer already said, the waitresses are a little underdressed and overexposed.

Having said that, the service has always been prompt and pleasant when I've been there. The food is a standard pub assortment, but there's a nice attention to detail and some effort at healthfulness. Many sandwiches come on whole wheat buns and my health-conscious requests to hold mayo, cheese or other fatty ingredients have always been heeded. While some pubs offer salads as a lame afterthought, the greens here tend to be fresh and well-prepared.

The portion sizes are big, but not insane: I'm never able to clean my plate, but I don't leave nearly as much as I would at a lot of places.

The beer is a mixed bag. I've never had a beer at the Grizzly Paw that has knocked my socks off, but they're decent. I go to this place more for the overall pub vibe than the beer itself.

The brewpub and the brewery/taphouse are in separate locations in town. Visited the brewpub and had dinner. Service was good. We were more impressed by the food and sodas than we were with the beer, which was average. Compared to other places in Canada, this place did seem a bit pricey. Not a bad option for brewpub fare, just don't expect to be blown away by the beer.

The Grizzly Paw serves decent food and average beer at high prices, but I guess welcome to tourist country. The food was passable but nothing more, serving what were clearly frozen pizzas to my kids at $10 and straight from cardboard box out of the freezer veggie burger for $16 to the bland, average beer for $8 CAD for a 20 oz pint of Rutting Elk (mine) or the Nut Brown ale (wife) steep for what you are getting all the way around, food and beer. My oldest liked his burger but that was the highlight. The service was pretty good to be honest and it is a nice, if not somewhat crowded atmosphere -- we were there at 4:15 on a Friday and it was already packed. I would like to try a few more of their big lineup of beers to see if they have any more game there, but I would be a little surprised if that was the case. I think they would be well-served to focus their lineup and really work on a handful of their beers to make them a lot better rather than have 10-15 average beers. If you look at the beer ratings, it is pretty uninspiring.

The Grizzly Paw has come a long way. There was a time when I didn't think it was possible to brew good beer in Canmore. There were a string of failed local breweries that produced very average beer before the Paw arrived. And, to be honest, the first offerings like Powder Hound and Rutting Elk were not the best. Over time, however, the operation has expanded. The selection of beers is vastly improved, as is the quality. It has become a staple of our visits to Canmore. The food is decent, the atmosphere is fun, and my kids love the soda.

This place is awesome. It's a nice sort of hideaway retreat for anyone who is coming back from the ski hills in the area (Banff, Lake Louise) or just a nice little day trip from Calgary (where I live). The place is always hopping busy and in the summer, the wait can be up to an hour long for the patio. They make really approachable, drinkable beer that they suggest pairings for in their menu. The food is good, but it can be a tad slow at times just do to how busy it is. I highly suggest the Indra Island IPA with the Angry Bison Burger. It's awesome!
I'm really looking forward to their new brewery opening a little later this year, and I might end up renting it out for my wedding in the next few years...

A disastrous visit to what I figure is probably generally a pretty nice place. General atmosphere very lively, lots of wood, too many TVs. A bar-crowd vibe in a gastro-pub atmosphere. Gets a low rating mostly because the washrooms were in an inexcusable state. We visited on a busy night, but there's no excuse for not keeping the bathrooms fit for non-caveman use.

The beers were middling overall: the raspberry ale was outstanding, the IPA was boring, and the brown ale was pretty decent. There's a good selection of styles for all palettes (or, as their menu says, "pallets").

We were seated reasonably quickly but service after that was rushed and disinterested. Our food order got massively screwed up and it took ages to fix it. We did receive a free round for our trouble, but the apologies were perfunctory and insincere and the food was priced about twice what it should have been for the quality. A place that's all about handcrafted beers and sodas should be paying more attention to the food too, and our veggie burgers were the worst we've ever had, anywhere (I'm guessing about 33% cardboard content). The fries were medium-low average, dry and grainy. The potato garlic soup (a freebie that we had to wrestle for to tide us over while we continued to wait for our order) was excellent, though. On the way out we could feel the relief: thank goodness our table had been freed up - don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Stopped there this weekend. An interesting joint in a pretty location. The quality of the food and beer were adequate but not outstanding.
Lots of beers on tap to choose from; maybe 6 standard and 4 or 5 seasonal. All decent quality, but nothing too daring.
The food is standard pub fare, though the bison burgers were suberb.
As with everything in this tourist town, a bit on the pricy side, but competitive with the other establishments.

I'd go back if I were in town, but I wouldn't go out of my way to make sure I went, and I certainly wouldn't plan a trip around it.

In the Bow Valley this is really the only decent stop for beer. While their beer won't win any awards or take anyone by surprise, they are half decent and serviceable after a days hike, and definitely better than the taps of Keiths and Kokanne Gold that grow like weeds around town. Standard pub fare, with typical seasonal staff serving you (worthless at times, and decent at others). Outstanding patio, if weather and crowds permit definitely sit outside.

Worth stopping by, at least you're supporting a local brewery and one that's stuck it out for at least 14 years. Hey they even make they're own pop.

Stopped in here at the suggestion of my uncle (which was a bit unexpected) on the way to Banff. Parking can be a little tough, but it IS summer time in tourist land.

A pleasant selection of styles covering a good range of standards - But Brown, Stout, IPA, Pilsener, Amber & Red.

The place is nice, and lit up just enough indoors - beautiful patio if you can manage a spot outside!

Beers themselves were decent - some better than others, though the prices in these parts tend to be on the pricey side ($20 nachos??). They have an onion soup with IPA reduction that was fabulous (I stole a taste from wife and father!) Beer taster also went for $11.50 - nearly twice as much as I might expect. Perhaps worth looking into if price is not an issue, as otherwise, it's a decent little spot.

On the gondola to the top of Sulpher Mountain, my wife and I rode to the top with on the the locals who worked in the souvenir shop. Her description of Grizzly Paw was to my point: only tourists who don't know better go there--locals never do.

We had lunch her right when it opened before heading out to check out the natural scenery--it has sort of a Hooters/sports bar feel. Waitresses underdress, big patio, and everything is shiny. Didn't see the brewery. I had a veggie burger that sounded great, but was very bad. My wife's food was ok, but we never returned in spite of being in town for five days.

The beer isn't worth the trip either. The Brewing Badger Light was the worst, no suprise in a pub line up, but this was nearly undrinkable. The rest were very hard to tell apart, similarly bad with little distinction between the light beers. The best of the lot was the draft Root Beer that my wife ordered. Never got past the samples to have a pint of anything else.

Less than an hour drive from Calgary. Although it is located right on main street in Canmore, it has pretty small store-front, so people have driven right by. Being in the heart of the Rockies, the inside is similar to a ski-lodge. Lots of wood decore and big wooden tables. There is a small bar area, the main dining room, and and upstairs dining room with more tables. Also a large heated patio with a great view of the mountains. Has that pub feel with pool tables and stone fireplace as well.
The Grizzly Paw has a good line up of house brews and also do a number of seasonals. Regular selection includes Beavertail Raspberry Ale, Big Head Nut Brown, Powder Hound Pilsner, Grumpy Bear Honey Wheat, Mooseknuckle Winter Oatmeal Stout, and Rutting Elk Red. Obviously they like to poke fun with the beer names. My server was kind enough to give me a set of labels. The website has descriptions and pictures of each label.
The brewery is attached to The Grizzly Paw - a large window provides patrons with a view of the brewing process in work. The brewery has won several awards for the fine beers and ales produced here.
The service and food were pretty good. During peak season it can get quite packed, but I have never had bad service. Food is basic but they advertise "The Grizzly Paw is well-known as having the best pub fare in the Rockies". Good sized portions, very good home cut fries.
They do sell their beer for take out in bottles, and have recently started selling Grumpy Bear and Rutting Elk in cans. (Had to bring back a 6 pack of each).
They also have a small selection of shirts, caps, and beer glasses available.
It's definitely worth checking out if you are ever in this part of the Rockies.

I stopped over on a blustery, storming, hellish winter night travelling from Revelstoke back to Airdrie. I had two choices: I could risk my life on the death-trap highway, or stop in for a couple pints of microbrewed nectar. Tough decision, this. What a relief to drop by at the cosy Grizzly Paw Pub. Located in the quaint and trendy downtown core of beautiful Canmore, it exudes a Rocky Mountain forest lodge atmosphere from the outside. The inside seemed to me more like a coffee-house with a bar, but it was tastefully done and comfortable, with wood furnishing all round. I did not visit the upstairs, but directly next to the stairs are large windows showing the brewing tanks. The place was fairly busy, and it seemed most of them were locals, who were very friendly and easy to chat with. Decent atmosphere. From what I tried of their brews, they could use a little more fullness. The beers seemed a bit "green." They were easily drinkable, however. Service was also good, but not outstanding. The waiter who served me was friendly and helpful. The selection of beer at the time was very good, with about 9 or 10 of their brews on tap, including a seasonal pumpkin ale, brewed for the winter. I tried one of their pizzas, and it was extremely tasty, though I do not recall much else about the menu. Note: they are now also brewing root beer, cream soda, and ginger beer; pop, that is. The waiter kindly gave me a sampler tray, and the root beer and ginger beer were extraordinary! That is how a ginger ale should taste; burning the mouth as you swallow. Revisit value is high for me, as there are still several beers and meals I have not tried. The question is not if, but WHEN I will return.

Located right on main street in Canmore, the only thing that is unpleasant about the Grizzly Paw Brewpub is finding a bloody parking spot. Canmore is a hip mountain town. That aside, you've got it made. It's a fairly small location, the bar is off to the left as you enter the door, with 4 or 5 tables in there, the main dining room to the right which gets packed quickly during peak times of the day. The inside is all wood-finished with a rustic feel, a sort of "mountain lodge" motif. The best asset (at least in the warm months) is their patio, which is larger than the dining room, and it's also heated for those chillier Autumn afternoons in the mountains. I prefer the patio because of the spectacular view of the mountains all around you, amazing atmosphere from that alone.

The Grizzly Paw has their share of hits and misses when it comes to their own beer line up, some styles are better than others. I was truly disappointed with their Bighead Nut Brown, while everything else lingers between average to above average for their style although a bit watery at times, with a few gems as well. I loved their Pilsener, they've done a fantastic job on that, I highly recommend it. Also had the chance to try two seasonals, an IPA and an Oktoberfest, both were decent. They also offer a fair amount of regional micros in bottles as well, for those of you with issues of drinking draught.

The service was fairly attentive, their knowledge of the beers pretty much similar to the written propoganda. The food was fantastic, my friend ordered a salmon burger, while I got the chicken spinach wrap. Mine was a much smaller portion than I was expecting, but their home-cut fries and the salad that accompanied the meal were both good sized portions and filling.

I liked the Grizzly Paw Pub, we went there twice in one day while meandering around the Rockies, but then again I just love being in the mountains. They are marketing some of their line now in bottles and cans, the honey wheat and the red ale in that general area of the Rockies, as far away as Calgary for now, plus the rest of their line available in bottles at the pub itself. Lots of other promotional items as well, from beer glasses to women's thongs.

It's definitely worth checking out if you are ever in this part of the Rockies.